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The Commissioning of Stan Manning and Tonga Pakofe as Pastors at Narara – Mangrove Mountain Uniting Church will be held during the Service on Sunday 9th October at Narara Uniting Church, 93 Wyoming Rd., Narara, commencing at 9.00am.

Whether you are familiar with Messy Church and Godly Play or curious to come and experience these for the first time, bring your family and enjoy the day out together! The day begins with Morning tea at 10am, with Messy Church at 10.30am. Lunch together from 12noon, followed by a full Godly Playsession at 1pm. We will be finished by 2.30pm. Cost includes morning tea, lunch and craft activities. – $10 adult, $5 child, maximum $20 per family (up to 4 children, 2 adults)

You can download each document from the dropbox (or all in one go). The Business Committee report will be added on Monday and another e-mail sent. If you’d like to print documents, please download first then print – if you print directly from the dropbox, it seems to have a comments panel covering half the page. I will bring along a few printed copies on the night.

Free Community Information Sessions. Come along for just one session or attend them all. Sessions focus on improving mental health literacy, reducing stigma, and promoting positive mental health for everyday life.

Pymble Uniting Church is again organising Christmas pudding-making sessions at the end of October and in November (download flyer). Great fun and a really delicious, traditional and fool-proof pudding, blessed by our minister, Steve Aynsley. Bring a friend along and join us in our hall for a Sunday afternoon (2-4 pm). Children are welcome as helpers. Tea and coffee is served afterwards with a taste of the pudding. Bookings close 30 September 2016

Information on Synod initiative to reduce the harm from illicit drugs At its meeting in April this year the Synod supported two resolutions on drug law reform concerning the personal use of illicit drugs. Uniting is leading a working group with input from the wider church, including the Social Justice Forum, to give effect to Synod’s decision. The Synod was conscious of the need to keep congregations and other Uniting Church councils and bodies aware of this initiative and to respond to any questions about it. The Social Justice Forum has prepared the following material on the initiative:

A two page update for Uniting Church members and congregations

A common questions document that responds to questions about the initiative raised at, and since, the Synod meeting·

A theological statement on our response to the personal use of illicit drugs·

A one page summary of the benefits of changing the way we respond to the personal use of illicit drugs

Could you please share this material with your congregations, via e-mail and/or by printing off copies. Please also pass the material on to other Uniting Church groups and individuals within your networks as you see fit.

This is a special appeal for your help at a critical time in our campaign for more humane policies for people seeking asylum in Australia. Right now there’s a small window of opportunity which needs to be pushed open – we’re hoping you can lend your weight. Uniting Church in Australia President Stuart McMillan has added his voice to the growing call for a National Summit on alternatives to Australia’s current policies including mandatory detention and offshore processing. The summit call is supported by faith leaders, over 2000 academics, and community groups including the Social Justice Forum’s Give Hope: Uniting for asylum seekers campaign. With Federal elections behind us, and concerns growing from the appalling reports of conditions in detention, we need to build on the momentum for a national rethink on better ways of dealing humanely with people seeking asylum.

What you can do right now is to write a letter, and encourage others to write, to your local Federal Member of Parliament. This should not just be a form letter but a real handwritten or typed-and-signed one, urging the MP to support a National Summit to consider more compassionate policies.

Please download some possible content that you could include– but the point is to write the letter in your own words. You should express your own sadness and concern and your frustration at the polarising nature of the debate; but with the positive message that there are alternatives that could attract multipartisan support and that, as a constituent, you’d like your representative to support the summit call as an achievable first step. Your letter could include a call for a meeting with your MP – and, if there’s a positive response to this, we can provide you with advice on how to maximise the effectiveness of the meeting.

From a Summit, we can rise above the dark gullies of partisan politics and see the wider view. We hope you’ll join with the many voices in your church and the community to help that happen. Please share this message with as many people as you can in your congregation(s).

Many thanks for your consideration. We look forward to hearing from you and working together to make progress.

Central Coast Zone meeting , Wednesday 28th September at 3.00 pm at Kincumber Uniting Church, 152 Avoca Dr, Kincumber, entrance from Killuna Road. We will be discussing the proposals about Zones before the Presbytery makes decisions at the October meeting.

Heather Proctor, a new member of the St Davids Congregation, will be our guide and teacher for the occasion. Heather has a great love for the work of George Herbert which, together with her experience as a teacher of English Literature, ensures a lively and interesting morning. And further, the programme will enhance our appreciation of the Christian faith and the way it is enriched by poetry.

Copies of three poems of George Herbert, and other resource material, will be available on the morning